'Town's buzzing': Fan frenzy has Knights pumped for prelim

The Newcastle Knights are determined to ride a wave of fan support all the way to the NRL grand final as excitement in the Hunter grows for Sunday's clash with the Panthers. 

A convoy of Sid Foggs buses is set to descend on Accor Stadium on Sunday afternoon with the Knights desperate to continue their fairytale run through the finals series. 

While the match is a Penrith home game, current sales data shows Knights fans have bought 65% of tickets.

More than a thousand fans descended on Knights HQ on Wednesday morning for an open training session, with supporters receiving a glimpse of their heroes up close. 

"The town's buzzing and they deserve it," backrower Dylan Lucas said. "They've turned up for all those years when results haven't been so good so to now be able to repay that is special. 

"You can't go and get a coffee without someone telling you how good the Knights are going and how happy they are that the Knights are going good. We've still got another job to do this weekend so we can't take those pats on the back, we've just got to keep working towards that goal."

While Newcastle boasts one of the most passionate fan bases in the game, they have been starved of success over the years. 

It's been 25 years since Andrew Johns led the Knights to the 2001 premiership and 13 years since their last preliminary final. 

Despite the struggles, supporters have continued to pack into McDonald Jones Stadium and they have received their reward with this year's giant-killing run.

Rookie forward Lachlan Crouch grew up in Maitland wanting to play for the Knights and is relishing the chance to live out his childhood dream. 

"All you want to do as a little kid is to fulfil that dream and play for the Newcastle Knights," Crouch said. "I'm lucky I'm doing it now. 

"There's a good buzz about town, it's very exciting. You can always see the fans in their Knights jerseys, we see them down at the beach and all around so it's unreal to see this support."

Crouch is exactly the type of player Newcastle officials are determined to build around moving forward, with the club investing in a grassroots program they hope will soon rival Penrith's famed talent nursery.

The 23-year-old progressed through the Knights junior pathway before moving to Cronulla in 2022. 

The opportunity to return home popped up last season and he hasn't looked back. Crouch made his NRL debut in Round 18 and is among a young core of promising forwards to impress throughout the finals series.

Along with Cody Hopwood, Harrison Graham, Francis Manuleleua and Jermaine McEwen, the group have shown this year's success is just a sign of what's to come. 

"It was a dream come true to make my debut," Crouch said. "Growing up as a little kid supporting the Knights, you always wanted to play first grade for the Knights and I'm lucky I got to debut with them. 

"We all love playing footy together. We all played a fair bit of NSW Cup together last year and we've just been enjoying this experience."

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